ABSTRACT

Concern is growing worldwide over the negative outcomes of rural abandonment. Yet, problematisation of this phenomenon remains limited by insufficient explanatory frameworks and lack of empirical evidence from the conditions which precede, underlie and succeed it. Accordingly, this paper presents a case from Turkey, where significant rural abandonment is locally attributed to the ravages of multiple introduced pathogens in European chestnut (Castanea sativa) populations, and where our previous investigation has verified that traditional livelihood practices mitigate damage severity at the levels of trees, plots and landscapes. In order to better understand individual stakeholder motivations for remaining acting members of chestnut landscapes in the face of such serious challenges, we conducted 142 extended ethnographic and narrative interviews with chestnut-utilising participants across Turkey’s highly diverse human and physical geography. Our results show how the struggle to remain as acting landscape members requires community livelihood adaptation, drawing on institutional memory, innovative learning and social connectedness.

摘要

全世界越来越关注农村遗弃的负面后果。然而，对这种现象的问题化仍然受到不充分的解释框架和缺乏来自它之前、背后和之后的条件的经验证据的限制。因此，本文介绍了土耳其的一个案例，该案例中大量的农村遗弃在当地归因于欧洲板栗（Castanea sativa）中多种引入病原体的破坏。) 人口，并且我们之前的调查已经证实，传统的生计做法可以减轻树木、地块和景观层面的破坏严重程度。为了更好地了解个人利益相关者在面临如此严峻的挑战时继续担任栗色景观成员的动机，我们对土耳其高度多样化的人文和自然地理环境中使用栗子的参与者进行了 142 次扩展的人种学和叙事访​​谈。我们的研究结果表明，保持作为景观成员的斗争如何需要社区生计适应，利用机构记忆、创新学习和社会联系。